With every new stage of babyhood there is that new sense of wonder. What will she do next, what milestone will she achieve? For us, Allison is set to take her first steps very soon. She is already standing on her own without holding onto anything, and she even took a couple of steps toward me the other day. It is so exciting as a mom to watch all of these fun milestones taking place right before your eyes!

I also love watching her interact with new things every day. Watch what catches her attention and how she plays, explores, and interacts with each new thing. Recently we were given four new toys to try out. I have loved just watching her excitement over each one as she discovers and learns all the little nuances of each toy. She is such an explorer already and oh so curious about everything!

Age Appropriate Learning Toys

One of the things that I always look out for when picking out toys is the age range. If the toy is not age appropriate, either my children will not get how to play with it and will become frustrated, or the toy will be too easy for them and they’ll get bored. I always use the manufacturer recommendations as a starting point, and then gauge my child’s level and readiness based on where I think they are at. Of course you are always the best judge of where your child is developmentally, however, the recommendations are usually pretty on-par.

The four new toys we just gave to Allison are a perfect example. She is almost 11 months old, and the one toy that is recommended for 6-36 months is her favorite — because she gets it! The other toys are great and she loves playing around with them and interacting with them, however, she is just a tad too young to really use them to their full potential. She’ll get there soon, but for now we’ve just introduced them to her and will bring them out for full play when she is ready.

Great VTech Learning Toys

VTech® Chomp & Count Dino™ (Age 12-36 months, MSRP: $19.99) Chomp & Count Dino

  • Children can learn about colors, numbers and food with the adorable new Chomp & Count Dino. Simply place one of the eight brightly-colored play pieces in the dino’s mouth and watch as he eats and recognizes each piece.
  • Play in either food or counting mode and the dino responds with rewarding sounds and phrases all while introducing colors, numbers, shapes and more. Press the question button and kids can answer the dino’s questions to show what they’ve learned.
  • Five shape buttons help kids learn shapes and numbers, while spinning the disc on dino’s back will play sing-along songs. The dino can also be pushed or pulled by a string for even more fun melodies.

Allison just loved playing with this little dino. She picked up on the idea that you had to feed him right away. Although I did find it a tad tricky to get the food discs into his mouth, as you had to give a good amount of pressure, it was fun watching her try. I took a few pictures and I laugh every time I look at these. I call this the “if I can’t get them in there I’ll knock you over” segment. 🙂

vtech chomp dino

VTech® Sit-to-Stand Smart Cruiser™ (Age 6-36 months, MSRP: $39.99) Sit-to-Stand Smart Cruiser

  • Cruise into the learning zone on the Sit-to-Stand Smart Cruiser. This 2-in-1 toy grows with children and transforms from a floor play toy with detachable steering wheel activity panel to an exciting ride-on toy.
  • The interactive steering wheel features driving, learning and music modes with more than 80 songs, sounds and phrases that introduce animals, opposites and first words. Turn on the engine, move the gear shifter or press the horn to hear realistic driving sound effects.
  • Children can pretend to drive to six different fun locations with arrow buttons teaching the concept of direction and road safety. Attach the steering wheel to the cruiser and it becomes a fun ride-on toy.
  • The Sit-to-Stand Smart Cruiser also has a fun front activity panel and under seat storage children can fill with small toys for more fun on the go!

This was the first toy we brought out for Allison to try. Her eyes literally lit right up when I set her on the seat and she immediately just starting cruising! I love that the play steering wheel is detachable for floor play as well. Sometimes you don’t want to go anywhere but it is still fun to make noise!

vtech sit stand cruiser

VTech® Grow-Along Music Center™ (Age 12-36 months, MSRP: $29.99) Grow-Along Music Center

  • Children can pretend to be musicians and sing along to the music with the Grow-Along Music Center. As they sing into the microphone, five colorful lights correspond to children’s voices, or they can play with wacky voice-changing and amplifying effects.
  • Rock out with three instrument buttons that play guitar, drum and saxophone sounds. Five animal piano keys introduce kids to instruments, colors and animals. Kids can choose between Learn & Play mode and Sing-Along mode to become learning super stars!

Not gonna lie, I think the older kids and I were diggin this toy more than Allison was. Once we would start playing with it and singing she would come on over and join the party though. She just doesn’t quite get the ‘sing into the microphone’ part yet. 🙂

vtech grow along music

VTech® Smart Shots Sports Center™ (Age 12-36 months, MSRP: $39.99) Smart Shots Sports Center

  • Parents can cheer on their little sports stars with the Smart Shots Sports Center. This electronic sports center features a soccer goal and basketball hoop for a fun 2-in-1 experience.
  • Kick the soccer ball into the net to hear fun sounds or toss the basketball into the hoop and the magic sensor will count up to ten each time a basket is scored.
  • Three buttons introduce shapes, numbers, opposites, sing-along songs and more. Turn the gears or flip the page to hear fun phrases and sounds. The sports center also features a light-up screen that plays a variety of fun animations and shows numbers, shapes and letters to reinforce learning.

This was the last toy we tried out simply because it was the only one that didn’t come with batteries (weird). Once we had it up and running though, Allison thought it was great fun getting the hoop to make noise, twisting the little gears (which also got the scoreboard going), and trying to dunk the ball. Prior to putting the batteries in we also played catch with the balls – one of her favorite games!

vtech smart shots

Want to learn more about any of these awesome toys? Check out VTech online at the links below.

VTech Giveaway

vtech giveaway

If you’d love to give all four of these same toys a try, you are in luck! One lucky reader will win the same four toys we tried. Enter on the form below for your chance (US 18+).

VTech Toys

 

So tell us…

Which of these toys would you most like to have? Do you look for age appropriate toys or just get what you like?

 

 

 Thanks to VTech for providing us with these great toys.